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Topic: Embarrassed I spent money on….. (Read 40575 times)

Did you ever spend your hard-earned money on something really dumb then later (maybe even years down the line) ask "What was I thinking?!”

Here’s my confession:In 1991 the morning radio station I listened to had a popular “psychic” as a guest. People were calling in (supposedly) and she was telling them amazing things about their past, and also predicting things which would happen in the future. They gave a number your could call to meet with the woman at a (nice) hotel for a 30 minute consultation. I called and made an appointment – the fee was $90.

As I think back, it was such baloney. Nothing she said came true, but I dunno, maybe she was telling me things I really wanted to happen. By the way, I checked and today that $90 would be $154.00. Wasted. Gulp.

I remember telling my older brother about it but I didn't tell him how much I paid. He was laughing too hard about me even calling to make an appointment.

DP wanted kosher bologna, uncut, to take to her mom. Kosher, not because mom keeps kosher, but because DP will only eat kosher deli meats (she doesn't trust 'regular' stuff). I tried to talk her into letting me just get a big chunk, but no, she wanted a whole one. I finally capitulated, and spent nearly $100 on a large, uncut, bologna.

We cut a medium sized chunk out of it, and took it to her mom, who dumped it in her freezer and tried to send it home with us the next time we visited - she doesn't eat it anymore, as it upsets her stomach.

This was a year ago. I threw the last of it away this weekend, freezer burnt, when I cleaned out the deep freeze. $100 worth of bologna, and maybe $5 worth was ever eaten. I still can't believe I bought the thing.

LED lights from 1saleaday.com. There were on sale for $10 for a pack of 4, so I bought 4 packs thinking I was soooo smart and could replace all the bulbs in the house with them. Too bad they were only 20 watts. We have one in the bathroom that has been on for a little over 2 years now and still going. It's a nightlight more than anything else.

I went to a Ren Faire and filled out my name to go into a drawing to win a free trip. I got a call from a woman saying I 'won' several hotel stays and all I had to do was pay some sort of fee of $800. This woman was very pushy and high pressure and made it sound like a wonderful opportunity and unfortunately I bought into it and put the money on my credit card. (I was only 20, barely an adult). I regretted it soon after and I wanted to back out and filed a complaint with the Better Business Bureau. After it was all said and done, I received $400 back and got nothing for the other $400 except a very expensive lesson.

Thought of another one: A year’s membership to a fancy health spa. A friend took me as a guest and I ended up signing a contract. I was a pup (early 20s) and barely was making enough to pay rent on a tiny efficiency apt. . (I think I went 4 or 5 times to work out and use the Jacuzzi, then enjoy a slushy fruit drink). I was able to cancel the membership after a few months, but it wasn’t easy.

A fancy bicycle and equipment (including a "cute" messenger bag that was way too expensive). I made about half the money back after it sat in my closet for a YEAR after I rode it 20 miles on the hottest day of the year (120 degrees), 5x my longest ride up to that point.I was not built for urban biking! Luckily I made more than 50% back on the bike and 75% on the bag when I moved.

At a mere 18 years of age, I got hosed on a car repair for $600. A male friend had recommended the mechanic and there were no negative BBB reports on the guy. The repair in question should not have been more than maybe $200, but I didn't know that.

When friend found out, he went in and ripped the guy a new Donkey's Patoot about ripping off young girls who didn't know a lot about cars. His antics, in front of a waiting room full of ladies, got me an instant refund of $300. I'm sure the guy lost most of the waiting ladies business, as well as friend and mine.

We also had a car repair cost and maintenance lesson for me for several weeks. Never had a problem since.

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Meditate. Live purely. Quiet the mind. Do your work with mastery. Like the moon, come out from behind the clouds! Shine. ---Gautama Buddah

When I first graduated high school, I thought it would be fun to try being an extra in a movie or TV show -- I knew other people who had done it. So I responded to an ad in the back of a magazine...i can't even remember which one...and mailed in $100 to an "agency" who would get me on the call lists. That money disappeared and I never heard a peep from them. In a way, I got my money's worth in education -- never pay someone to give you a job, that's not how it works.

I tried a second time with a reputable agency that someone recommended and actually went in for a meeting so they could meet me and get a few Polaroids. Didn't have to pay them anything. I remember getting a few calls to show up -- but I hadn't really thought it through about transportation to distant locations and having to be ready at a moments notice. I could never make the calls and thus ended my dream of running from an alien/monster/zombie attack -- it's still on my bucket list though.

Oh and I bought a lint lizard (www.lintlizard.com)...turns out my dryer's lint screen is quite effective after all.

« Last Edit: September 12, 2013, 12:43:47 PM by LazyDaisy »

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"A common mistake that people make when trying to design something completely foolproof is to underestimate the ingenuity of complete fools." — Douglas Adams